The Price of the Arctic
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15826/qr.2018.1.297Keywords:
environmental history; nature management; Soviet industry; Soviet Arctic; Kola PeninsulaAbstract
This review explores the relevance of environmental and historical environmental research in Russia, focusing on Andy Bruno’s The Nature of Soviet Power. An Arctic Environmental History as a complex study of environmental changes in the Kola Peninsula, and, more particularly, of such projects as the construction of a railway, the mining and enrichment of apatite, the smelting of nickel and copper, the construction and operation of thermal, hydroelectric, and nuclear power plants, etc. While stating that the book contains a great many facts, the reviewer emphasises that what is more important about this research is its analytical approach, generalisations, and a hypothesis that regards nature as an active participant in the Soviet project. The book consists of several essays about Arctic nature management which provide a detailed description of the development and practical application of the idea of the conquest of nature, crucial for the Soviet era and still topical today.